It is amazing to note how many times we are hearing about ‘Social Enterprises’, ‘Impact Investments’ …nowadays. There is, or at least seems to be, a lot of buzz around money chasing Impact Startups. In fact, an article at VCCircle here talks of how the money has gone from $4bn to $12bn in just recent times.…More
Category Archives: Opinion
Opinion: The fundraising dilemma
Optimism levels are currently extremely high in India surrounding the elections. There’s a very clear undercurrent of expectation of a stable and decisive government which makes me wonder about the scenario of a hung parliament with no clear direction. While that is one of the possible outcomes, in most recent conversations, the positive expectations are…More
Opinion: Why a VC in a hurry is bad news
Mayank Khanduja from SAIF Partners has an excellent post up at NextBigWhat on an unusual but important situation — where a VC moves quicker than is sensible to offering a termsheet. “We all know of instances where funds move quickly to extend a term sheet, only to see it fall through at later stage, as some…More
Opinion: Teenache for startups and how to get past the pain
The lifecycle of a startup is quite akin to growth as we all know as human beings. Series A/B rounds of equity typically get invested on the basis of potential (team and market) and therein starts the fun. Depending on the nature of business, the focus of growth stage companies can vary from getting profitable…More
Opinion: Venture capital’s summit push
It is now my eighth year in succession of claiming a great year for venture capital. I have been in the business for all of eight years. But then, I am also an amateur marathoner and a climber. And in all of these three trades, it takes years of perseverance to scale the summit. As…More
Opinion: Entrepreneurship lessons from AAP
The entire nation today is in a state of shock, of one kind or another, over the performance of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the Delhi elections. Having become used to misgovernance and the prior failure of newbies in making an impact in the political arena, AAP’s success has come as a welcome reinstatement of…More
Opinion: Does India need a TripAdvisor for healthcare?
Early last year, when I finally threw in the towel at my workplace, quite a few well-meaning (and possibly alarmed) persons in my circle of family, friends and professional contacts began thinking of ways to keep me gainfully employed. One such person was my other half. My husband is one of those creative geniuses who…More
Opinion: How to be a successful intrapreneur
If you are a decision maker or an influencer in an established corporate organization that faces the challenge of adapting to market changes, you will want to learn about intrapreneurship. It is the process of adopting an entrepreneurial point of view in the context of an existing or established business that intends to reinvent itself.…More
Opinion: SEBI’s angel fund norms a good step but need tweaking
SEBI’s move to define investment guidelines for angel funds is very welcome move. After some ill-conceived moves like tax on startup investments in the earlier budget, attempts to change policy with retrospective effect, etc. which dismayed the investor community, angel investors and entrepreneurs, this shows clear thinking and some thought out attempt to clarify and…More
Opinion: Sushrut’s sale to Smith & Nephew: what it says and what it doesn’t
On May 2, UK-based trauma care products company Smith & Nephew said it would acquire Pune-based Sushrut Surgicals, a homegrown closely held maker of orthopaedic implants such as bone plates and screws used to correct fractures and deformities, for an undisclosed sum, from the Pitre family. The move took me by surprise. After all, Ajay…More